


Fine Feathered Friend

by mastermoriarty1895



Category: Fluffy Chicken, Tumblr - Fandom
Genre: Fluffy Chicken Day, Gen, request
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-18
Updated: 2013-02-18
Packaged: 2017-11-29 19:04:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,466
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/690401
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mastermoriarty1895/pseuds/mastermoriarty1895
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A story of Peyton getting her chicken.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Fine Feathered Friend

**Author's Note:**

> This is a request from a follower on tumblr (sorry, I didn't know if you'd be upset if I put your url here or not, but if you want me to put it here, tell me and I'll edit it.)  
> Sorry if I got some of the details and things wrong, I don't really know much about Peyton. So, if she reads this, or if anyone who notices the mistakes reads this, I hope that they can forgive them.

The car engine rumbled as they drove along the dusty back road. They were only a few miles away from the farm now. Peyton stared out the window, thoughts of her new friend swirling in her head.  _What would she name it? Beyoncé? Flocka? Something else? Where would it stay? In the back yard? In her room? Would it get along with 2chainz?_  There were too many questions and her excitement kept her from being able to answer any of them.

They turned into a gravel driveway where a rusty, metal sign proclaimed in barely readable letter 'Alfred's Chicken Farm' and stopped near an old, Victorian farmhouse. It was red and gold, though the paint was fading slightly and the rose bushes looked a bit overgrown, as though the owner had given up on keeping them in line and had decided to let them grow as they pleased. Two farm dogs, a golden retriever and a collie, ran out from behind a metal barn to greet them.

Peyton unbuckled her seat belt and hopped out of the car, bouncing with excitement. She was only moments away from meeting her chicken for the first time. It had taken five hundred thousand note to get here, here dash was flooded with notifications, her inbox filled with the messages from haters expressing their doubts, and now she had thousands of strangers messaging her everyday about the chicken. But, as she saw the old farmer come out of the barn and wave them over, it all became worth it.

She ran over as fast as she could, almost tripping twice on loose stones. She looked up at the old famer who, despite his slight slouch, still stood a head and a half taller than her. His worn overalls were smeared with dirt and grass stains, and his hands were calloused and scarred, but his smile was warm and inviting as he lead her and her mother into the barn.

"You must be Peyton. It's nice to meet you, young lady. I'm Alfred, by the way. Here for your chicken?" The farmer's voice was rough but calming, with a slight southern twang.

"Yes, I am." Peyton smiled wider. "It took a lot of notes to get here." She laughed.

"Notes?" Alfred looked puzzled for a moment. "Oh, that's right, your mother mentioned something about a post or something or another."

"Yeah, I made a post on Tumblr and my mom promised to get me a chicken if it reached half a million notes."

He nodded. "I see. My grandson has one of those. He calls it a blog. That right?"

"Yeah. It's a lot of fun, but it's addicting."

"He does spend an awful lot of time on that computer of his. He's out here today, though, helping with the chickens." Alfred opened a gate and lead them out into a field full of various breeds of chickens. A tall blond boy holding a bucket of feed approached them.

"Hey, you the girl comin' for a chicken?" He asked, setting the bucket down and pulling off his gloves, shoving them into his back pocket. The sleeves of his plaid shirt were rolled up to his elbows and his sun-tanned skin was covered in small nicks and scars.

"That's me." Peyton smiled up at the boy. "I'm Peyton."

"Eddie. Pleasure to meet you Peyton." Eddie held out his hand. Peyton took it and shook hands with him.

"You two go on, I've got some business to talk with Peyton's momma." Alfred nodded to Eddie before leading Peyton's mother to the house, calling over his shoulder. "Don't let any of the chickens out, Ed!"

"I know! That was one time, Pa!" Eddie called back, frowning.

"So, Eddie, can I see my chicken now?" Peyton asked, eyeing the pen of fluffy chickens.

"Yeah, sure." Eddie laughed. "Over here. He's a runt, but that's not really a bad thing, see?" He led her to a wire coop that housed a chicken that seemed to be slightly smaller than the others. "He'll do just fine for a pet, I think."

"He's adorable!" Peyton squealed, causing Eddie to laugh again. The fluffy chicken looked up at Peyton, eyeing her before squawking and returning to his food.

"I suppose. Just a chicken, really. Damn things leave feathers everywhere." Eddie muttered, brushing some white fluff from his shirt.

"That's okay." Peyton stuck her finger through the wire to pet the chicken.

"Careful he might-"

"Ow!" Peyton pulled her finger back.

"Peck you." Eddie finished, smirking. "Here, let me see."

Peyton glared at him. "You could have warned me."

"I tried." Eddie grabbed a first aid kit from the wall. "Here, give me your finger."

Peyton huffed and held out here hand. "You could have said something  _before_  I stuck my finger in the cage."

"Coop." Eddie corrected, spraying disinfectant on her wound. He placed a bandage over the small cut. "No worries, it'll stop stinging soon."

"Okay." Peyton nodded. "So, how am I supposed to pet him if all he does is peck me?"

"He'll stop. He doesn't know you, give him time." Eddie opened to coop and pulled out the chicken. "By the way, he's a Silkie Bantam, not just a fluffy chicken." He held the chicken out to Peyton. "Here, hold him."

"Sure he won't peck me again?"

"No. He might, but do it anyway." Eddie shrugged.

Peyton took the chicken and smoothed the fluff on its head. "He's soft."

"Yeah." Eddie nodded. "You have to take care of it, though. It can't eat pellets, you have to give it smaller grain, chicken feed should do. And clean his coop at least once a month. Give him plenty of space, too, about tree square foot, and make sure predators, like foxes, can't get him."

"Okay. Anything else?"

"Yeah. Put some grit in his cage, and check him regularly for mites. I'll make you a list of things to do so you don't forget, okay?"

"Okay, thanks." Peyton nodded, handing the chicken back. "Should we go see if they're done?"

"Yeah, and I can write you that list." Eddie agreed. He placed the chicken back in the small coop and picked it up. "Pa's probably already given you're momma the other stuff for the chicken, feed and mite spray and all, so we just need this little guy. Don't keep him in this coop forever, though, it's too small. You can transport him in it, but he can't live in it."

"Okay. Bigger coop. Got it." Peyton nodded, following Eddie into the house.

"You can go on into the living room, that's where Pa and you're momma are. I'm going to go write up that list." Eddie set the chicken coop down next to the door and pointed to the next room. "In there."

"Okay. Thank you." Peyton smiled and walked into the room. Her mother sat on an overstuffed cream colored couch. Alfred sat in a rocking chair across from her, the redwood coffee table was covered in papers and chicken supplies. "-so that's about it."

"Right. We'll stop by the farm supply store and get a bigger coop before we leave town. Thank you." Peyton's mother smiled at the farmer. "She's really excited about the chicken."

"They make great pets, as long as you take care of them. Think you can do that, young lady?" Alfred looked to the doorway where Peyton stood.

"Yeah. I can take care of it. Eddie's writing me a list of things I need to do so I'll know how to take care of it."

"That's nice of him." Peyton's mother commented.

"It's no trouble, ma'am." Eddie smiled, stepping up beside Peyton. "Here. It's all you need to know about the chicken. And my email. I want to make sure you're taking proper care of it, so I want updates."

"Thanks, and yeah, sure. I can do that. Birthdays, playdates, first day of school, things like that, right?" Peyton joked.

Eddie laughed. "Yeah, that sounds about right."

"We should get going, Peyton. We need to get back before Monday, so we need to star driving now." Peyton's mother stood up and shook hands with Alfred and gathered up the supplies. "Thank you for your help."

"No problem, ma'am." Alfred stood up and walked them to the door. "Take care of that chicken, now!"

"I will!" Peyton smiled, holding the coop close. "Thank you! Bye!"

She got into the front seat, set the coop on the floor, and buckled up. "Thanks Mom."

"I'm not the only one you have to thank, there's five hundred thousand people out there that want to know you got the chicken." Her mother laughed. "Never thought you'd get that many notes, though."

"Neither did I, but I'm glad I did." Peyton smiled fondly at her new friend.


End file.
